A Citizen's Guide to Indiana

Introduced Version, Senate Bill 0171: Basically specifies that personal property taxes constitute a lien on personal property that is superior to that of another creditor. Requires a creditor coming into possession of personal property because of a lien to apply proceeds to the personal property tax before applying proceeds to its own lien.

Introduced Version, Senate Bill 0168

Way to go Sen. Alting! This bill corrects what I assume to be a drafting error. The existing statute provides that an emergency technician providing emergency care is immune from civil liability unless their act constitutes “negligence or willful misconduct.” If the intent was to offer some protection to emergency responders, allowing them to attempt to provide care without excess concern over civil liability, the existing version doesn’t do a thing. If the medical provider isn’t at least negligent, there wouldn’t be any liability to begin with. The new bill amends the law to provide immunity unless there is “gross negligence or willful misconduct.”

I had a client ask me about this statute earlier in the year, and I advised them that it was essentially worthless.

Introduced Version, Senate Bill 0166 Requires high school health to include fetal development in the curriculum, including “photographic images portraying each state of uterine fetal development” and “health consequences of early termination of pregnancy” (but no requirement that health consequences of the pregnancy itself be taught.) Again, I’m not a big fan of overly specific curriculum requirements.

This is obviously an effort to skew the message teen receive about the effects and consequences of pregnancy. They should be given lots of information about pregnancy, not just this specific set of facts and pictures.

Introduced Version, Senate Bill 0163 – Singles out furniture made by inmates in the DOC for sale only to state and local governments. Other goods can be sold on the open market. Looks like Sen. Jackman got a $400 contribution from “Old Hickory Furniture, Co.” Not exactly huge money but could explain his involvement in this bill. Also, Old Hickory gave $2,000 to the Indiana Manufacturers PAC and they gave Sen. Jackman $1,000.

The bill just seemed unusually specific, so I thought I’d dig a little. Could be coincidence, I suppose.

Introduced Version, Senate Bill 0159 another one from Senator Lanane. Allows a court to require psychological counseling as part of the sentence for a conviction of cruelty for animals. Probably appropriate, even though being an animal lover, I support vindictive justice in cases of animal cruelty.

Introduced Version, Senate Bill 0154 – This bill kind of suffers from some double negatives, but if I read it correctly, the open container provisions do not apply:
1. to a person in the passenger compartment of a motor vehicle designed, maintained, or used primarily for compensation (as long as the person isn’t the driver);
2. to a person in the living quarters of a house coach or trailer (not the driver).
3. where the container is in a locked glove compartment.
4. where the container is in the truck bed (or area behind the last seat in an vehicle not equipped with a trunk.)

Expands the open container provisions to vehicles in the right of way of a public highway even when not in operation.

Good article in the South Bend Tribune entitled SouthBendTribune.com: Daniels’ leadership faces test

Mitch Daniels has momentum and his party in charge of the entire Indiana government, but lack of money may mean he can’t get things done. This will be a good opportunity to see whether “The Blade’s” stint as Bush’s chief of the OMB resulted in tidal waves of red-ink based on personal preference or simply because he was a good soldier abiding by the Bush administration’s addiction to deficit spending.

He has to deal with a starting deficit of $600 million, $717 million in delayed payments owed to schools and an additional $150 million for school enrollment growth. On top of that, he wants to spend tax money on tax incentives for business and investment in research and capital. This means either spending cuts or tax increases. No indication has yet been given of what sorts of cuts or tax increases are contemplated.

School funding formulas will pit school against school. On the one hand, fast growing suburban school would probably like a flat, per-student formula; whereas rural and urban populations with stagnant or declining population and tasked with educating more expensive students would like a different formula.

Also, Medicaid costs are going up; Indy wants further government consolidation and gambling to finance the Colts; and Mitch wants Daylight Saving Time but has neglected to tell us which time zone he has in mind.